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The Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC) has defended the Federal Government’s approval of a N70,000 transportation allowance for public servants, dismissing the Trade Union Congress’s (TUC) rejection of the arrangement.
This was contained in a letter signed by JNPSNC National Secretary Olowoyo Gbenga and issued on Sunday in Abuja to the council’s affiliated unions and state councils.
The council said the allowance was part of an agreement reached between the government and organised labour after negotiations on workers’ welfare and rising transportation costs.
The allowance is payable for six months, beginning in November 2026.
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The disagreement follows differing positions by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and TUC on the allowance, with the NLC defending the agreement while the TUC has called for higher permanent salaries.
Why JNPSNC supports the allowance
Gbenga said the allowance was intended to cushion the impact of rising transportation costs on public servants and their dependants.
- “The payment of N70,000 transportation allowance to Nigerian workers is a welcome development, considering the unbearable transportation costs currently experienced by public servants across the country,” he said.
He explained that the agreement followed a meeting held on October 27, presided over by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammad Dingyadi, with representatives of the NLC, JNPSNC and Joint Health Sector Unions in attendance.
According to Gbenga, the meeting lasted more than six hours before the government and labour representatives reached an agreement on several issues affecting workers.
He clarified that the TUC was not part of the negotiations that produced the agreement, although it was entitled to express its views on labour-related matters.
The JNPSNC secretary added that any proposal by the TUC for a higher transportation allowance would be welcome if it resulted in additional benefits for public servants.
Other agreements reached with the government
The council said the agreement also provided for the implementation of the 40% peculiar allowance, effective November 2026, with arrears dating back to May 1 to be paid in three instalments.
The government also agreed to establish a tripartite negotiation committee comprising representatives of the government, organised labour and the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), following a demand by the JNPSNC.
The council had embarked on a three-day warning strike on October 2 to press for the establishment of the committee and the resolution of outstanding workers’ welfare demands.
- On health workers’ demands, the council said the meeting approved payment of 19 months’ arrears of allowances in three instalments, beginning in December 2026.
- It added that adjustments to the Consolidated Health Workers Salary Structure (CONHESS) would receive further attention.
- The National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission was given three weeks to conclude work on the CONHESS adjustments and forward its recommendations to the relevant authorities for approval and implementation.
The JNPSNC urged federal, state and local governments to honour the agreement, saying effective implementation would strengthen collective bargaining, restore confidence and improve workers’ welfare nationwide.
TUC had earlier rejected FG’s N70,000 allowance
Nairametrics reported last month that the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had rejected the Federal Government’s six-month N70,000 transportation allowance for workers, arguing that permanent salary increases would provide more reliable relief amid rising living costs.
The union said temporary interventions had failed to reach all eligible workers in the past, citing inconsistencies in the implementation of the N40,000 wage award introduced in 2023.
It called on the Federal Government to immediately raise the salaries of its lowest-paid workers from the current N70,000 minimum wage to N300,000, alongside applicable consequential adjustments.
